Distylium plant named &#39;vintage jade&#39;

ABSTRACT

A new and distinct cultivar of  Distylium  plant named ‘Vintage Jade’, characterized by its compact, layered, mounding and spreading growth habit, light green new growth, dark green mature foliage, and reddish maroon flowers.

GENUS AND SPECIES OF PLANT CLAIMED

Distylium sp. hybrid

VARIETY DENOMINATION

‘Vintage Jade’

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Distylium plant, botanically known as Distylium sp. hybrid, a member of the Hamamelidaceae, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name ‘Vintage Jade’.

‘Vintage Jade’ originated as an open-pollinated seedling from seed collected from a Distylium sp. hybrid (Distylium myricoides×D. racemosum) growing in Watkinsville, Ga. ‘Vintage Jade’ was selected in the summer of 2006 by the inventor in a cultivated environment in Dearing, Ga.

Asexual reproduction of ‘Vintage Jade’ by stem cuttings since 2006 has shown that all the unique features of ‘Vintage Jade’, as herein described, are stable and reproduced true-to-type through successive generations of such asexual propagation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Plants of the new cultivar ‘Vintage Jade’ have not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with changes in light, temperature, soil and rainfall without, however, any variance in genotype.

The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be unique characteristics of ‘Vintage Jade’. These characteristics in combination distinguish ‘Vintage Jade’ as a new and distinct cultivar: 1. Compact, layered, mounding and spreading growth habit; 3. Light green new growth; 3. Dark green mature foliage; and 4. Reddish maroon flowers.

Plants of ‘Vintage Jade’ differ from plants of the parent, Distylium sp. hybrid, primarily in growth habit, foliage color, and cold hardiness, as plants of ‘Vintage Jade’ have a smaller, more compact, mounding and spreading growth habit, large lustrous dark green mature foliage, and increased cold hardiness, whereas plants of the parent have a larger, less compact, upright, spreading growth habit, smaller medium green foliage, and are less cold hardy.

Plants of the new Distylium ‘Vintage Jade’ can be compared to plants of the cultivar ‘PIIDIST-I’ (U.S. Plant patent applied for), which is a sibling that originated from the same open-pollination. ‘Vintage Jade’ has a has a compact, layered, mounding and spreading growth habit, light green new growth, dark green mature foliage, and reddish maroon flowers, whereas ‘PIIDIST-I’ has a compact, upright-spreading growth habit, yellow-green new growth, dark green mature foliage, and reddish purple flowers.

Plants of the new Distylium ‘Vintage Jade’ can be compared to plants of the cultivar ‘PIIDIST-II’ (U.S. Plant patent applied for), which is a sibling that originated from the same open-pollination. ‘Vintage Jade’ has a compact, layered, mounding and spreading growth habit, light green new growth, dark green mature foliage, and reddish maroon flowers, whereas ‘PIIDIST-II’ has a compact, spreading growth habit, maroon-purple new growth, dark blue-green mature foliage, and reddish maroon flowers.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying color photographs illustrate the flower and foliage characteristics and the overall appearance of ‘Vintage Jade’, showing the colors as true as it is reasonably possible to obtain in color reproductions of this type. Colors in the photographs may differ slightly from the color values cited in the detailed botanical description which accurately describe the colors of ‘Vintage Jade’.

FIG. 1 illustrates the overall appearance and growth habit of ‘Vintage Jade’.

FIG. 2 illustrates a close-up view of the new growth and mature foliage of ‘Vintage Jade’.

FIG. 3 illustrates a close-up view of the flowers of ‘Vintage Jade’.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, color references are made to The Royal Horticultural Society Colour Chart, 2001 Edition, except where general terms of ordinary dictionary significance are used. Plants used for the description were approximately 3-years-old and were grown in 11.8 L containers under outdoor conditions in Watkinsville, Ga.

-   Botanical classification: Distylium sp. hybrid, cultivar ‘Vintage     Jade’. Parentage: Distylium sp. hybrid. Propagation: stem cuttings.     Time to initiate roots in summer: about 3to 4weeks at 32° C. -   Plant description: Broadleaf evergreen flowering shrub;     multi-stemmed; compact, mounding and spreading growth habit. Freely     branching; removal of the terminal bud enhances lateral branch     development.     -   -   Root description.—medium, well-branched.         -   Plant size.—the original plant, now about five-years-old in             the ground, is about 81 cm high from the soil level to the             top of the foliage and about 244 cm wide. First year stems             having a diameter of about 2 mm. Shape: round. Fine             pubescence. Few small lenticels about 1 mm in diameter and             N199B in color.         -   First year stem color.—146A. Second year and older stems             have a diameter of about 4 mm or more. Shape: round.         -   Second year and older stem color.—199B.         -   Stem strength.—flexible when young, less flexible once             mature.         -   Internode length.—about 1.4 cm.         -   Trunk diameter.—about 1.9 cm at the soil line. Color: 199A.             Bark: does not exfoliate, covered with many lenticels about             1 mm in diameter and N199B in color. -   Vegetative bud description:     -   -   Arrangement.—alternate.         -   Shape.—ovoid with fused, pubescent bud scales.         -   Size.—about 3 mm in length and about 2 mm in width.         -   Color.—199A. -   Foliage description:     -   -   Arrangement.—alternate, simple. Length: about 6.2 cm. Width:             about 2.1 cm. Shape: Elliptical. Apex: Acute. Base: Cuneate.             Margin: entire, occasionally undulating.         -   Texture (upper and lower surfaces).—thick, leathery.         -   Venation pattern.—pinnate. Venation color (upper and lower             surfaces): midrib color is 147B and secondary vein color is             147A.         -   Color of emerging foliage (upper surface).—144A. Color of             emerging foliage (lower surface): 144B. Color of mature             foliage (upper surface): 147A. Color of mature foliage             (lower surface): 146B.         -   Petiole length.—about 4 mm. Petiole diameter: about 1 mm.             Fine pubescence 199B in color. Petiole color (upper and             lower surfaces): 146A. -   Flower description:     -   -   Flower type and habit.—apetalous flowers with a pubescent,             5-parted calyx are borne on short racemes from the leaf             axils. Natural flowering season: late winter, approximately             January to February in Watkinsville, Ga. Individual flowers             are showy for approximately 1 week and are self-cleaning.         -   Flower size.—about 1 cm in diameter and about 1.1 cm in             height.         -   Pedicels.—about 2 mm in length. Peduncles: about 1.2 cm in             length. Color: pedicels and peduncles 146C in color with             pubescence 165A in color. -   Stamens:     -   -   Quantity/arrangement.—7 to 10 per flower. Filament: about 3             mm in length, less than 1 mm in width, and 146D in color.             Anthers: about 2 mm in length, about 1 mm in width, and 185A             in color. Pollen: produced in moderate quantities and is             158D in color. -   Pistils:     -   -   Position.—superior. Size: about 1.1 mm in length and about 2             mm in width. Color: 146B. Stigma: 2 per pistil, about 6 mm             in length, 178B in color. Style: 2 per flower, about 3 mm in             length, and 146B in color. Ovary: two per flower, about 2 mm             in diameter, about 2 mm in height, and 146B in color. -   Fruit:     -   -   Type/appearance.—2-valved, beaked woody capsule containing 2             seeds, one per valve. Fruit size: the capsule is about 1.5             cm long and about 7 mm wide. Mature color: 200C. Seeds:             oblong to elliptical in shape, about 5 mm in length, about 2             mm in width, and N200A in color. -   Disease/pest resistance: Plants of the new Distylium grown in the     nursery and garden have not been noted to be susceptible to     pathogens or pests. 

1. A new and distinct Distylium plant named ‘Vintage Jade’, as illustrated and described herein. 